Crusader Chronicles
by welcometofightclub
Summary: Ten years. Ten years after their success. Ten years of struggle. Ten years of triumph. What did they become, who did they become, how have their friends changed, and looking back, was it worth it? OH BUCK YES!
1. Prying Open my Third Eye

**AN: first time actually writing one of these for MLP. I never thought I'd get so wrapped up in brony culture that I'd want to write one. But this inspiration came along and I decided to try it out. Hopefully you enjoy. On my deviantart page (pinkertonfloyd) once uploaded, the Art is by Summer Foth, AKA Sulalu. ENJOY!**

"And now, fellow art admirers of Ponyville," Prima, the local art gallery manager announced to the crowd and cameras, "I present Applebloom's newest work of art…." Grabbing the sheet which draped itself over the canvass, Prima Color paused for dramatic effect. The audience complied, and remained silent yet strained their necks closer towards the podium where Prima stood at, waiting anxiously for the reveal of this new painting.

"…The Third Eye reopens," Prima finally concluded. Tugging tightly with her hoofs, the sheet flew off the canvass.

The spectators were awestruck.

Several "oohs," and "Ahh's" flooded the auditorium where the display was taking place. Cameras began to snap rapidly taking multitude of photo's which sounded like machine gun fire. Reporters began mumbling into their tape recorders describing the work of art, using such words as "Mysterious," and "dark,": "hallucinogenic," and "Surreal." But the number one word being tossed around was "disturbing." All in all, the audience was pleased and inspired and very much satisfied.

It was obviously a pictured inspired by a dream, or at least a nightmare. In the middle of the canvass was the tiniest portrait of a pony ever. She was cowering in the middle, covering her eyes with her hooves, and hunched over her body in a quivering-quaking fashion; the absolute demeanor of a pony gone mad. Surrounding the pony was darkness. Black, black and more black (with just a touch of grey). Behind her was the main feature of the painting. It was a giant eye, with a glimmering Iris, eye-lash, and outline of pure white. The positioning of the eye allowed for the tiny pony to be placed right in the center of the dark pupil. Sprouting from the eye appeared to be monsters. They looked like worms but with teeth. And they were trying to escape the canvass, or at least that's how it appeared.

Everypony was dying to know the exact inspiration for this work. What was the purpose? What was the inspiration? Was there any symbolism? Luckily for them, part of the exhibit today was that Applebloom was explaining a few choice paintings that she was displaying. She had already done 4 and this one, the 5th one, was the last of the few new ones she was presenting.

So where was she when the time called for her to step up to the podium?

She was where she always was between each painting; standing near the back of the stage sporting sunglasses and smoking a cigarette.

It was obvious how much she changed. Sure, some changes were subtle. She had grown slightly to a normal pony size and her coat of fur had gotten just a little bit darker. Some things didn't even change at all. She still kept the bow in her hair and her voice still had that great farmer drawl that all the Apple family members had.

Emotionally however, she was practically a mess. She was no longer the whiny, yet bright and happy little Applebloom she once was. She was a grown, sophisticated, yet eccentric pony who now of days hanged out with complete weirdo's (at least in Applejack's opinion) and vowed to never marry or have kids, making her virtually a detached self-recluse artist.

And it all began when she acquired her cutie mark.

The story of how she acquired her cutie mark was just about as strange and mysterious as the pony was now. It seemed rather fitting when one looks back at it. For Applebloom the story of how she gained a cutie mark began in the same place where she gained the cutie mark crusaders; school. And just like the cutie mark crusaders, the inciting incident was Diamond Tiara's constant heckling. It had grown much more abusive as time went on. As little kids, it was nothing more than snobbish cracks, and although painful, they saying remained true. Sticks and stones would break the bones but the name calling never hurt poor Applebloom.

When they became teenagers, Diamond Tiara began paying for the sticks and stones. She would pay stronger, more aggressive and downright stupid stallions to hassle her daily (she had enough bits to do that), and the hassling would range from a few choice words, to sometimes slamming the poor pony into her locker. Teachers couldn't notice when the bullies did their job for the paid stallions acted and pulled of their actions with style and grace. A quick slam of the shoulder and Applebloom would go flying. No one noticed, and to Applebloom it felt like no one cared. At least she had Sweetiebell and Scootaloo to rely on and tell her troubles to.

Unfortunately for her, on that day, neither was to be found.

Sweetie was in Canterlot performing with the band (which in turn, gave her her cutie mark). Scootaloo was…..well, usually she was always at school, against her wishes of course. However, on that day, she wasn't there. Worst of all, on that day, the bullying was heightened and Applebloom felt as though she was going to lose her mind if she didn't have no one to talk to. However, at the moment she breathed a sigh of relief, knowing that she could at least relay her issues to Cheerilee.

Unfortunately for Applebloom, she wasn't there either.

"Cheerilee is rather sick today children," The substitute teacher announced, "So I will be your teacher today." Grabbing the clipboard and dawning on a pair of reading glasses, the griffon announced the plans. "Your assignment today is to draw a picture in the style of the one of the artists you've been learning about."

Applebloom's face dropped into a perfect pout/open mouth gap of shock. She was totally unprepared. She rarely paid attention in class (focusing too much on acquiring her cutie mark), and she was a terrible artist, or so she thought at the moment. If she had her friend's with her, they could've relied on each other to come up with a great idea. But they were gone. Sweetiebell had the excuse, but where was Scootaloo? She was getting rather worried.

A few moments later, as the class continued on with their work, and as Applebloom stared blankly at the blank paper she was given, Rainbow Dash appeared in the doorway asking to see Applebloom. The electric blue Pegasus seemed on edge. She breathed heavily and her eyes were wide. This confused and frightened Applebloom somewhat, and when the substitute teacher excused them both for the day, the farm filly knew that something was up.

Good news was, Applebloom no longer had to worry why Scootaloo wasn't at school. Rainbow Dash told her.

Bad news was, Scootaloo was in the hospital.

As they rushed passed the hospital doors, Rainbow Dash explained everything to the dismayed Applebloom. Earlier that morning, Scootaloo bumped into Dash on the way to school and explained an idea that she was developing. Quite simply, Scootaloo found a way for her to break the land-speed record on her scooter. There was only one slight problem; she needed someone to assist her in pulling back the larger than life slingshot to fling her forward. Rainbow Dash, being the naïve and thrill seeking Pegasus that she was, assisted Scootallo, seeing as how she had a few minutes to spare. Everything worked out brilliantly. Once she was propelled from the slingshot, she stayed on her scooter like a pro, and Rainbow Dash was able to effectively clock her going at "120" miles per hour. It was going so smoothly.

That was until Scootaloo's face collided with the rather large and bulky tree branch that hung low.

Nurse Mercy prepped Applebloom for what she was about to see. "She was awake and fine when we brought her in, but we had to knock her unconscious for the surgery." She explained. "She suffered a broken nose and dislocated jaw, along with several lacerations along her face and a burst blood vessel in her eye." She sighed. "She's lucky you know. Fillies tend not to survive such a crash, much less walk into the hospital with a boastful and gleaming attitude of happiness."

She pulled back the curtains and Applebloom gasped. Tears began to well in her eyes. The sight of her friend in such a state was too much for her to bear at one moment. She was damaged pretty badly. The evidence of that was rather noticeable due to the excessive amounts of gauze that was wrapped around her face. The machines buzzed and beeped as the sleeping Scootaloo's heart slowly went along. A large tube was shoved down her throat to assist with the breathing, and to top it off, something else was showing brighter than any beam of sunlight.

"What is that?" Applebloom almost screamed as she pointed towards her friend's no longer blank flank. The cutie mark was rather simple. It was a scooter propelling through a ring of fire. It was an admirable cutie mark.

Dash chuckled as she patted the shocked Applebloom on the shoulder. "She gained that as soon as she got up from her crash. I guess that's how she was able to stay awake and happy as we walked in. She was practically crying tears of joy."

Applebloom's mind raced. Horrible thoughts began to transpire. It all boiled down to one simple key factor. Applebloom was the last of the crusaders to receive her cutie mark. She was now a teenager, two years away from graduating school, and still remained blank flank. Maybe she was to be blank forever; a pony with no purpose or aspiration; no goals or special talents. A pony with no cutie mark meant a pony that had nothing to offer. She had nothing to offer. She was nothing.

When confronted with this news, she stood awhile in silence, not knowing exactly how to handle these begrudging feelings of anger and betrayal which boiled inside her.

"Isn't it great," Dash commented.

Applebloom snapped.

She pushed Dash off of her with a giant burst of strength, causing the Pegasus to stumble back flabbergasted. Applebloom then screamed at her, with a voice which cracked with fury. Tears pooled down her eyes like waterfalls, and she placed her hooves to her hair and began to pull roughly.

"No!" she screamed. "This is awful!" her anger got the best of her at that moment, and she rampaged on the nearest object. In her case, it was a case which was lying upon the table. She picked it up and without thinking, threw it on the ground. The container bust open and all of its contents spilled out, and the mini-containers which held those contents cracked and caused the liquid to spill.

It was blood samples which began to pool along the floor.

"What the hay are you doing?" Nurse Mercy said as she grabbed the demented Applebloom and started to call for security. Rainbow Dash still stood in the corner, shocked by what she saw. As Applebloom began to get carted away by the justifiably angry nurse, her eyes caught something.

"Wait!" she screamed again, this time out of a pleading shrill instead of an outlandish yell.

Nurse Mercy, taking note in the change of voice in Applebloom, looked to the floor as well, and noticed what Applebloom was staring at.

The blood which flew out of the vile was starting to streak along the tiled floor. Strangely, the pattern in which the blood started spilling was almost geometrical….

…much like a drawing.

"Hand me a piece of paper, now" Applebloom commanded.

The art project was a fantastic success. Of course, there minor hiccups along the way. Both the Nurse and Dash were flabbergasted when Appleboolm asked that upon hearing that she couldn't use the blood from the floor, to have her blood taken and to be given the syringe. Never the less, there was no harm in what appeared to be no foul, and in a quick blink of the eyes, Applebloom was given a syringe of her own blood. It was the perfect tool for the perfect job. The drawing reminded her much of a cartoonist they were learning about known as Ralph Steedman. It was simple, and bold, and it was enough to get her an A (although the teachers were rightly taken aback and somewhat disgusted when handling the drawing. It caused quite a stir amongst the administration and she was called to a hearing on whether or not she was to be expelled, which gave AJ a huge impression of her sister).

All the painting really was, was the word "alone," spelled in blood.

Simple, yet overpowering. Disgusting yet practical. Dark and depressing, yet inspirational and impressive. These words would forever be associated with Applebloom's artwork, along with the cutie mark she received once the assignment was completed.

It was a paintbrush smacking a canvass violently, as though the artist holding the paintbrush was attacking, rather than painting. It symbolized all the pain and harassment Applebloom was going through, and how art had became her escape; how art was simply a way for her to unleash the demons onto paper, so that she would never have an episode like the one she had in the hospital again.

When her flank glared white with light and as that light dissipated her cutie mark was revealed. She jumped about as high, if not higher than Pinkie Pie, and began to declare "YES! YES! I GOT IT! I FINALLY GOT IT!" over and over again. The residents in the hospital began to cheer, knowing full and well how impressionable and important such a day was to a filly. It was the happiest moment in young Applebloom's life.

From that day on, Applebloom focused only on painting, using all the money she received from doing her chores around Sweet Apple Acres on buying the best brushes, canvases, oils and products that bits could buy. After high school, she went on to college to perfect her craft. 3 years into college, the fruits of her labor paid off when she was given the opportunity to display her works of art in her first art gallery. Many buyers came and went, and Applebloom went from poor to being only 20% away from Rarity's level of wealth. The family was proud of her, including Applejack, even though to this day, she still finds some of her artwork rather creepy and hard to look at.

Everything was going great.

Then Applebloom bit off more than she could chew.

While in college, she made some friends and some rather strange friends at that. She had no problem hanging out with the "ordinary," mares at school, but she was drawn, compelled, and most of all, welcomed into the group of other artists as well. They were a fantastic and bewildering lot. Druggies, addicts of all kinds, cutters, suicidal thinkers, progressive intellectualist, mate swappers, and above all else, ARTISTS!

She moved into an apartment with several other artists (the weirdo's AJ referred to), and lived there for 2 years. They were a strange group all right. Some had some rather shady pasts that no pony dared speak of. One pony in particular had a self-mutilation obsession while another suffered substance abuse problems. The only other female in the small, cramp, trash filled, polluted apartment use to be a groupie for DJ-Pon3, and had multiple diseases which caused blisters and measles to spread across her body. To this day, Applebloom will sometimes wake up in the middle of the night, sweating and screaming. It scared Applebloom mentally, and some of the things she saw, will never go away.

But she survived. It toughened her up greatly, and made her recessive to social interaction, but she was alive and well. Even though she would never go back to being the cheerful, sweet, adorable Applebloom that once was, and even though she was now only a shell of the pony that she use to be, she had her health, she had her sanity, and most of all, and she learned to support herself when no one else could be there. She still hung out with the crusaders when they found time to hang out. Scootaloo was usually on a movie set 5 to 6 times a week helping out with the stunt department and Sweetiebell's band was constantly either in the studio working on a new album, or out on the road busting their chops. But when they found time, they would spend the night together, and have sleep over parties like the good old days. But as stated before, Applebloom became somewhat of a shut in.

Today was 10 years to the day that Applebloom received her cutie mark, and she couldn't think of a better way to mark such an occasion than with another art gallery. This time, her artwork became so popular, that the local ponyville art museum didn't have the room to hold the multitude of ponies that wanted to see her work. So a theater was rented out and transformed into an art gallery over night, and the attendance was massive.

Applebloom explained her newest piece of art to the fans. Causally, she would take a drag of the cigarette. "The idea for this painting came from this theory that Twilight explained to me a long time ago." She said. She took another drag, and then continued. "Twilight had been researching on this ancient philosopher that believed ponies could evolve to a bigger and brighter level of consciousness. His name was…gahh…..I can't remember his name. I apologize. Anyways, he believed in a thing called a third eye, which is basically like our sixth sense in a way. When we pry this eye open, we evolve much quicker and become much stronger. He believed that in order to achieve this, ponies had to look into their 'shadow' which was the subconscious, and analyze what it meant. This meant picking apart their dreams, their habits, their feelings, etcetera, etcetera." She paused for a moment then pointed at the drawing. "This also meant looking into the past and realizing how it shaped you individually as a pony. And although the past can be a scary place, as depicted by the 'monsters' of this pony's past right here, we need to walk through it in order to achieve evolution. I thought it was a good theory and I partly subscribe to it. Logically speaking, we only use 10 percent of our brain daily, and by looking into our past and subconscious, we can evolve our thinking and gain the other 90 percent. Hopefully, all of us can do this one day, and maybe then, society and ponanity as a whole can stop acting like a bunch of chickens with our heads cut off." The audience lightly chuckled and Applebloom gave forth a rare occurrence for the spectators, a signature Applebloom all knowing smirk. After the tidal wave of photos ensued, she looked towards the audience. "Ok, I'll take one more question before I hit the autograph table and we can open this gallery to the public."

It seemed like millions of hooves shot up at once. Applebloom mentally chuckled at the sight of this. She randomly pointed to a grey reporter near the back. "Yes?"

"Is the pony in the middle supposed to represent you?" the stallion asked.

Applebloom looked back at her painting and hummed to herself in curiosity. "It never really occurred to me before, but that pony did turn out looking a lot like me, didn't it?" she responded. The audience laughed again. "I suppose my subconscious was trying to give me a message." In context with what the painting was about, the audience laughed again. Jokes aside, it was now time for Applebloom to give forth her true answer. "Well…Art is supposed to be subjective. You, the readers or witnesses or audience or whatever you are at the time, are suppose to place your ideas, your thoughts, and your opinions upon the work of art and figure out what it means to you. That's why music has so many genres. If one pony doesn't like hip-hop, he or she may like country and so on and so on. So with this painting, you could say that the afraid and terrified little pony is me, for I did indeed have a strange and terrific past. But one could also say that the pony could be Fluttershy, or Princess Luna, or whoever. What I was really trying to achieve was for the audience to ask the big questions, for all great works of art make ponies ask great questions. These questions are 'what is your subconscious like?' 'Do you like it?' 'What did you find?' But most importantly, 'have you visited it lately.'" She told the spectators, "Thank you," before stepping down the podium. Some of her younger fans tried to rush her and glomp her, but luckily the guards were able to hold them back from crossing the ropes.

As she sat down at the autograph table, Prima Color finished off the session by stating, "I declare the gallery, open!'

The autographs came and went. She signed mostly picture of herself or blank slates of paper; the typical objects a pony has autographed. The only bizarre thing about the signing that day was that she had to sign a baby. It was weird, but strangely kind of cool as well. She only vaguely hopped that the mother would wash it of her child's forehead later. Otherwise he was going to get harassed in school later in life.

When the gallery was starting to close, and the ponies started to fade away, something extraordinary happened. At the time, Applebloom was speaking to Prima Color and was beginning to argue. The situation was pretty self explanatory.

"C'MON!" Applebloom practically begged as she spoke to the manager. "I said 60 bits, no more, no less. Do you realize how much I worked on that bucking thing?"

As Prima began to step down off the step ladder, holding onto the picture being taken down, she shot back a look towards Applebloom. "Do you realize how much my boss in our company is up our flanks daily?" which she arrived onto the floor, she regained her calm and cool composer, and spoke politely. "Look Applebloom, I understand how hard you worked for this. And Believe me, if it was my decision, I'd let the buyer pay the original price. But this here is an auction, and unfortunately, no other bidder would go up to 60."

"I'll go 75." A new voice concurred.

Applebloom turned towards the voice, and her face broke in shock and awe.

She stood there twiddling her hooves nervously. Her eyes were darting in a guilty manner. Her pink coat was automatically recognizable for Applebloom. She thought she was hallucinating. There was no way in all of Equestria that she would ever show her face around her, much less seemed dismayed for such an act. However, it was reality, and she really was here. Applebloom mouthed her name silent in disbelief.

"Diamond Tiara?"

"I'll raise the bid up to 75." Diamond Tiara announced.

Prima stood there confused for a second. "Um…..ok. But the auction is already over."

"Go grab him for me," she asked Prima. "I know the man personally, and I believe we can come to an agreement."

Again, a small period of silence overflowed upon them. It was that type of silence that a pony gets accustomed to when awkward feeling would float abound. Again, it was Prima who broke the silence. She nodded her head towards Diamond Tiara and proclaimed, "Allright," before walking away from the painting, presumably walking towards the bidder.

Applebloom stood there dumbfounded. Diamond Tiara got closer to the painting and began to analyze it. When she spoke, it was obviously apparent that she felt rather uncomfortable speaking to Applebloom, alone.

"It-it's b-beautiful." She announced.

Applebloom looked up from her cigarette to stare at Diamond Tiara, as if to say, _did she just say 'that'?_

"Thank you," was all that the artist could reply with.

Diamond Tiara looked back at Applebloom. Her eyes darted towards Applebloom's face, then down to the cigarette, and then back up again. "You've changed."

Applebloom huffed in response. "You have as well."

The princess-like pony smiled for a brief second and then looked back at the painting. The tension in the room was so thick that it could've been cut with a knife. Finally, Applebloom sighed and asked the question that was pestering her mind greatly.

"Why are you here?"

It was now Diamond Tiara who sighed greatly. She stepped in front of Applebloom, and with the utmost sincerity, began to speak with her directly. Her eyes stared back at hers, and Applebloom noticed a faint trace of tears behind them. She actually legitimately meant what she was saying, and it blew Applebloom's mind.

"I….I came here to Apologize." Diamond Tiara began. "I want to Apologize for everything. For the abuse, the teasing, the bullies, just…..everything. I was a terrible person to you and the weight of what I did has been killing me these past few years. My father was thrown in jail due to bad business practices and my mother since then divorced him. I don't want you to take sympathy for my plight, but just hear me out ok? I was raised like a pampered princess my whole life and didn't know anything about heart ache or lost. Now I do, and now I understand how terrible you must have felt at the way I treated you. I understand completely if you don't accept my apology and I would hold nothing against you. It's just that…I had to do this. I had to. And I hope you understand that I really mean this. I know there's no way to say it rightly, but it still needs to be said." She choked a bit on her tears, and with a voice that was about to crack, she stated one last time. "I'm sorry."

Applebloom stood there silently. This couldn't be the real Diamond Tiara. It had to have been a clone.

Just then, at that moment, Prima trotted back in with a somewhat disappointed sneer. "I tried to find him but he's completely gone."

"That's ok," Diamond Tiara replied. "I live with the guy who bought the painting. He's my colt-friend. Hopefully we can work something out. But if it's ok with you, I'll pay up the extra 25 bits that he has not paid you yet."

"Fine with me," Prima announced as she held out her hoof. Diamond Tiara reached into her pockets and gave forth the coins. "Thank you," she replied.

"No problem." Diamond stated with a quiet voice that Applebloom recognized the emotional state behind it; sadness. Sadness for what though?

As Diamond began to trot away, Applebloom finally spoke up.

"Hey," Applebloom shouted.

Diamond Tiara turned, looking puzzled.

"Would you…would you like to hang out sometime?" Applebloom asked.

All the light pink pony could do was raise a brow, completely confused by the request. She thought Applebloom would never ask.

"Well you see," Applebloom continued as she herself began to become the one who stared at the ground and twiddled her hooves. "Sweetiebell's band is having a private concert at the Canterlot palace for Princess Luna. Only invited guests are allowed to attend. Scootloo got three tickets and she was going to give the third to her colt-friend but they broke up recently-so….I mean, you don't-….y-you don't have to if you don't want t-"

"I'd love to," Diamond Tiara replied, causing Applebloom to look up with a sheer expression of shock painted upon her face. "What time?"

"Ummm….."Applebloom scrambled for some words to say. "It's a late night show….you know-being princess Luna and all so…..maybe I could pick you up around 8 and we could hang out at a bar or something?"

"That would be awesome." Diamond Tiara said as she began to walk out the door with the painting in her hand. Turning back as she made her way through the rotating doors, she exclaimed, "I'll be waiting for you."

And with that she was gone. Again, silence flooded the now empty auditorium save for the two ponies. Applebloom was flabbergasted by what just happened. The gears in her head why beginning to cram. It was hard to process the information but from what she could work out, it appeared that Diamond Tiara was actually…..Nice.

"Who was that?" Prima asked inquisitively.

Applebloom replied with the only words she could think of. And to this day, they somehow still ring true.

"An old friend."

**Whoa! That was long. Hopefully you stayed with me. Hope you enjoy the story and the art. More to come. Please give me your honest opinion. Also, each chapter title is refrencing a song, if you can name the song correctly, you'll get a shoutout in my other fan fics and on this one as well. PEACE! PLEASE REVIEW. **


	2. I ain't no Fortunate one

**Hello all you lovely readers. I haven't kept track of how many views I got but the comments and likes are fantastic. Thank you all for the support. This is my first time posting my writings on this sight and I really appreciate all the positive feedback. Now, on to the topic that's on everyone's mind. Yes, this took me awhile. I'm a big procrastinator and I very sorry for it. That's just how I am. Second, I am a musician first and foremost. Writing is just something I do for fun. If you'd like to see some of my music, head over to YouTube and look up themetalman3. There's a link right here on my profile. And lastly, I am also going to go off to college in 2 years so my parents want me to check some out in California, Florida, and New York, so I've been flying back and forth. But, with all that out of the way, I finally found some free time to write the newest chapter of Crusader Chronicles. Hope you enjoy. **

Snap, tuck, slam, spread. Snap, tuck, slam, spread.

Jester ran through the list of actions over and over again in his head. He had to perform each action correctly and in sequence; otherwise, he would experience disaster. But it was difficult, oh so difficult, to remember his directions along with his lines and perform both at the same time. It was the price to pay to be an actor wanting to perform his own stunts. What was he thinking?

The pony in front of him, one of the makeup mares, was applying a light powder to his cheek, when the director began shouting his commandments. "All right, places everyone," he began. The pony was begging to head away from Jester, but just at that moment, he grabbed her hooves and politely told her, "Thanks."

This caught her off guard somewhat. However, she took it in stride as Jester just being Jester. Many high profile celebrities acclaimed that Jester was possibly one of the most polite actors in all of equestrian. He was so very kind and so very gentle. There was even a rumor floating around that on his last film project, "The Mare with the Dragon Cutie Mark," he paid one of the caters 200 dollars each day for just keeping the drinks cold.

"We don't have all day," the director continued. "This is the martini shot and if all goes well, we can place this episode in the can and call up shop on this season." A few ponies and stallions from around the set shouted in approval. Even Jester gave a short fist pump in appreciation. "Now Jester," the director directed. "Do you remember your stunt instructions?"

A small sweat broke out on his brow and he twiddled his hooves for a while. He was fearful that he wouldn't perform his duties correctly and that he would seriously injure himself. Nevertheless, he replied with dignity, "Yes."

"Good," the director replied. Then he took out the megaphone and began calling out cues. "Ok, lights, you ready?" the key grips and lighting technicians responded fervently with a 'yes.' "Hank, you ready?" The actor Hank Strong responded off from a distance with a shout, "Yes sir." "Ok," The director stated with a mixture of nervousness and excitement. Then, with a wide grin, he proclaimed with swagger, "Lights, Camera, ACTION!"

And the scene began.

Jester sank into the skin of his character, Stonerguy. As his character, he looked out the door of his house at the other actor Hank Strong (playing his character; Officer Leroy), and noticed him walking towards him with a powerful, menacing glare. Jester began waving his hands back and forth, and with a voice shaky with trepidation, he stated, "hey, you got nothing on me, ok."

Officer Leroy kept approaching.

Stonerguy, with a fearful stare, kept saying, "Listen now, you've got nothing on me so you can't just barge in here and harass me, ok?" Jester was thinking nervously, 'ok, I hope I'm saying the lines correctly. He's getting closer. Ok, remember. Snap tuck slam spread. That's right…..i think. Oh no. Wait? When am I supposed to snap? Am I going to do it too early?'

Meanwhile, Officer Leroy kept approaching, until he reached the doorstep of Stonerguy's house. He raised his hoof forward and landed a vicious blow against Jester/Stonerguy's face.

This caused Hank to completely loose character and gasp loudly as he immediately pulled back his hoof after feeling it strike Jester's face. The impact was wild and critical. It felt squishy and terrible in Hank's hoof. Jester, in the midst of panic, completely forgot to snap his head back and thus the fake punch turned out defiantly to become a real punch. Jester's body began to tilt back without his control, as gravity played its gruesome game. He clutched his now bleeding snout in agony and the back of his head collided violently with the wooden floor of the set below him. Everyone on the set groaned in dismay and a couple of mares were shocked beyond all compare.

However, there was one mare that wasn't so surprised.

She galloped towards Jester quickly to aid him back on his feet. While she actually did care for the stallion, she still sighed in disappointment as she assisted him back to his hooves. Jester's nose was still bleeding as she patted him jokingly on the back. Then, without reserve, she exclaimed her next words in a very angry tone.

"What did I just say like three seconds ago?" Scootaloo asked Jester angrily.

"Snap….tuck…slam…spread…" Jester replied with a squeaky tone as he still clutched his continuously bleeding nose.

"You certainly got the slamming part down correctly," Scootaloo told him with a sardonic sigh. "Guess what you forgot to do?"

"…..snap," Jester answered.

"Exactly," Scootaloo replied. "If you would have remembered to snap you neck back when Hank reached his mark, you could've avoided your injury and that is why I am your stunt coordinator, so you don't end up breaking your snout."

The director, who had cut the filming immediately after Hank gasped and was now approaching Jester and Scootaloo with a curious look, asked "So it is broken?"

"Of Course it's broken," Scootaloo replied as she pointed towards Jester with her other hoof dramatically. "Why else would it be gushing blood like a freshly tapped well?"

Jester felt terrible, not just physically but emotionally as well. With a hitch in his voice and a small tear in his eye, Jester asked, "I am….so…..so sorry. Did I ruin the tapping?"

Scootaloo rolled her eyes in a gloriously overwhelming fashion. Typical actors, she thought. They got so worked up about one stupid little scene. Bunch of wussies.

"No, No," the director reassured Jester. "Nothing's ruined. We will have to slightly edit the scene with some earlier cuts we used with the stunt double, but other than that, I think we're good." Then, turning his head towards the entire production crew, the director shouted with a joyous scream, "Ok everybody. That was the last shot of the day and it's also officially the last shot of the season. I'll see you'll around next summer if the show gets renewed. Other than that, great work. THAT'S A WRAP! CONGRADULATIONS EVERYPONY!"

Everyone on the set cheered. Many embraced each other and some of the makeup mares cried tears of joy. It had been a wonderful season of ups, downs, highs, lows, but all in all, it was just a fantastic season of shooting. Many agreed that this had to have been the best season yet. And knowing the writers, if the show got renewed, it was only going to get better. Addresses were being passed around so that each pony could send letters to each other. Many ponies promised each other to have lunch sometime in the near future. In other words, the typical after-party was being planned and production was officially done. It was over. It was now time, to celebrate.

Unfortunately for Scootaloo, there was no time for celebration. Scootaloo was constantly being shoved back and forth between various sets of various different movies and TV shows as a stunt coordinator that there was no time for her even to catch her breath. The only exceptions were her sleep at night and her weekends off. Other than that, she was a classic working stiff.

But working stiffs usually don't help other ponies by showing the proper technique of how to break and fall out of a window several stories up.

This made her smile. She would admit. From time to time, she found that working constantly made her stressed out. But in these moments, she would look at her cutie mark, and look at her choice of career, and just start laughing. It was the best job in the world, in her opinion, and if she was to be overworked, then so be it. At least it was an entertaining and highly amusing job. If she was going to be stressed out about any job, then let it be the job she'd love to have. There were many things to like about it. The constant action, meeting famous celebrities; just the initial concept of a stunt coordinator was awesome. It made dinner parties a lot more fun._ So what do you do Scootaloo? Well, I'm a stunt coordinator. What does that mean? Oh, I teach actors and stunt double how to jump through a ring of fire while on a motorcycle as hysterical demon bloodhounds which will be digitally added chase them._

She admitted this to herself every day. Sometimes her job was a chore, as self evident by her having to drag Jester along to the medical aid station to get his nose treated. She found it highly annoying. And on top of that, from there, she would usually have to attend another production of a completely different show or movie. However, today she was to go from here to her utilitarian hovel and wait for Apple Bloom to pick her up for SweetieBell's concert. And that was worst. While she anxiously waited for the concert with excitement, she felt fear for having to sit at home for a few minutes with nothing to do. She would be alone. Being alone was not good. She was never good at being alone. Being alone allowed her more time to think and dwell on bad things. She didn't use to be alone. She had several colt-friends from the past that lived with her. But just like all the other colt-friends, her most recent one did not work out and by being alone she dwelled on her past lover more and more. It was not a good thing at all.

So yes, her job was a chore, but it was also uplifting and fun all the time, and since the beginning of time, she knew she was going to be pony who would live life on the edge. She would be a pony who would experience life at a 125 miles per hour with nothing holding her back or slowing her down. She lived for excitement. She breathed danger. Death never scared her and her biggest priorities were to go bigger and faster with each stunt she'd perform. She wanted to be a professional dare-devil at first. But that never paid the bills. This job was fun, and put food on the table, so it was a perfect match. However, she never would've had this job in the first place, had she not received her cutie mark and realized what her purpose in life was, and who she was to be.

While she guided Jester towards the medical aid station, she smiled in remembrance of that special day. It felt to her like it only happened so recently. It was just like it happed yesterday.

* * *

She took that same road to school every morning. It's striking image and features always astounded her. It was a long, wide road in which one could gallop as fast as they could without repercussions. It would forever engrave itself into her DNA. She sometimes would dream about the road, with its wide bearing oak trees on either sides and with the school in full sight just at the end of it. She always sprinted towards school when taking this road. Why wouldn't she? This road allowed her to be free. It also allowed her interesting opportunities.

For instance, the road allowed her to sling-shot herself on her scooter at a completely insane speed. Why? Why would she want to take such an opportunity?

Because…..she was bored.

And, there was nothing better to do on that day of school, and it was near the end of the last semester, and she really didn't care if she was late to school or not in the first place. There were millions of excuses to grab on to. And when she thought about them, it only made her smile more. On that day, she had finally finished the slingshot. She tweaked it to perfection and adjusted the height and width just right so she and her scooter could fit perfectly. All that had to happen was for her to be pulled back and then released. Upon release, she would officially break the land speed record. Rainbow Dash would be so proud.

And speaking of Rainbow Dash, who better to launch her and witness her greatest and most triumphant act ever.

"You want me to what?" Rainbow Dash asked with a very curious and bewildering look in her eyes as she stared back at Scootaloo. She had officially lowered the cloud she was resting upon when she heard the words, "Slingshot," and "launch me," together in a sentence.

Scootaloo only looked back up at her idol with a beaming smile and all the happiness in the world. She was giddy with excitement. "I want you to launch me from my Slingshot," she told Rainbow Dash with absolutely no shame, or embarrassment whatsoever. It came out of her mouth as though it was a business talk.

Rainbow Dash cackled, but she did so more out of incomprehension rather than humor. Still low to the ground, she flipped around on her cloud and began to rest her head. "Sorry kid. I can't help ya," she announced. Then, not really paying attention to what she was saying, she proclaimed, "Sounds rather dangerous."

It was though a nuclear bomb exploded within Scootaloo's brain and her entire conception of Rainbow Dash had been shattered. "But….b-b-but-but," and then, she lost it. "YOU'RE RAINBOW DASH! YOU LIVE FOR DANGER! NOTHING SCARES YOU! YOU'RE LIKE THE BRAVEST PEGASUS IN EQUESTRIA!"

Rainbow turned around with a smug grin on her face. "Well of course," she agreed. "But I'm also not stupid. A stunt like that could kill ya. Only a true master like me could ever pull off such a feat."

It was at that moment that a truly nasty thought entered Scootaloo's brain. Had this thought not have arrived, Scootaloo would have probably went to school with dismayed eyes and shattered hopes and would have received her cutie mark a lot later in years. It was a thought that truly changed everything. And it made Scootaloo smile a wicked grin.

"You're right," Scootaloo admitted to Rainbow Dash, who was just about to fall asleep…..

….Until she heard this.

"I'll have to work on my skills so I can become a master myself and then pull off such a feat," Scootaloo preformed. "One day, I hope to be better than you."

Rainbow Dash's eyes shot right open. An audible SNAP was heard in her head. This wasn't going to stand. "Uh….excuse me?"

"You heard me," Scootaloo replied with a menacing glare and an evil grin.

Rainbow Dash turned around once more to face the evil pony. "So, you think you can be better than me?"

"Well," Scootaloo began to mockingly check her hooves with a blasé look in her eyes. "I don't want to brag but…..I think I might be better than you already."

"Bull crap!" Rainbow Dash announced, fully knowing that Scootaloo was egging her on.

"Oh no," Scootaloo returned the tangent with a monotone voice, "Really, I am. And I can prove it to ya."

"Fine, Prove it," Rainbow Dash retorted.

Scootaloo pointed towards her slingshot which she dragged with her towards Rainbow Dash, hoping that she would immediately agree when upon hearing her idea. Thank Celestia that she brought it out with her; otherwise, it would've been a long and tedious task to bring the slingshot back to the road from her home. She looked at the slingshot for quite some time, and then looked back at the angry Rainbow Dash.

"You launch me off that slingshot," Scootaloo told her, "And I'll prove it to ya."

Rainbow Dash was skeptical, as anypony should've been. She knew this was a set up. All those proclamations about how she might've been a better…..whatever than Rainbow Dash were lies. She was just pushing her into this position right now. She had to submit to the idea or face the humiliation of punking out in front of the president of the Rainbow Dash Fan Club. It was all a sham, all a lie, and Rainbow Dash knew better than to fling a pony off into such breakneck speeds. But at the same time, she was making accusations that could not stand as they were. Rainbow Dash, was being challenged, and being Rainbow Dash meant never turning down a challenge.

"Fine," Rainbow Dash huffed out with a defeated and angered tone. As she went to set up the Slingshot, Scootaloo could only smile even more deviously at how her plan was actually coming to light. She laughed audibly, when a thought about Rainbow Dash entered her brain. _'Hook, line, and sinker.'_

* * *

Approximately three minutes later, Scootaloo hoped onto her scooter and got into her position. Rainbow Dash gripped her and the band tightly and pulled them back as far as the elasticity of the band when allow them. When she could no longer pull without breaking anything, she looked at Scootaloo and laughed at the determination on the little pony's face. She literally thought she could do this. It was sure going to be fun to watch. And knowing Scootaloo, such a feat wasn't out of the question.

"Here we go," Rainbow Dash announced playfully into Scootaloo's ears.

And she was off.

And quite literally, or at least in Rainbow Dash's eyes, she was gone. The speed at which she was launched was tremendous. In no less than three seconds time, the pony flew so fast on her scooter, that she became nothing more than a dot in the distance with a comparable size of an ant. Rainbow Dash floated by the slingshot for a long time, just staring at the speedster with a slack jaw of awe, then she decided to fly and catch up with the little dare devil, and see how she was progressing.

The wind in her mane, against her skin, it was exhilarating. The speed she felt caused endorphins to buzz wildly and caused her to experience a high she could never experience before. It was as if something like heaven dawned within her brain. She could never feel this good again. This moment in her life was monumental.

And in just a few moments, it became historical and significant in Scootaloo's life, forever.

In the midst of her yelling and screaming of joy and admiration at the way she could feel her body work it's was to the rear of her scooter due to the sheer wind power, she then felt a strange tingly sensation in her side. It wasn't a bad feeling, nor a good feeling, just a feeling. She also noticed out the corner of her eyes, bright lights beginning to emerge from her left. She began to search out the source of the lights, only to find that there were admitting from her blank flank.

She began to smile greatly with an open mouth of excitement. She wasn't about to be a blank flank no more. Years of witnessing other ponies receive their cutie marks, she knew the moment when one was about to appear. And by sweet Princess Celestia, it was about to happen to her.

When the lights cleared, she got her first real glimpse at it. It was a scooter jumping through a ring of fire. It was supremely cool and Scootaloo knew that it possessed a certain amount of swag to it. She began to cry tears of joy. It happened. It finally happened. Years of torment, years of questioning herself and who she really was, years of self doubt and humiliation, now wiped away in one simple appearance. Her cutie mark was hers and hers forever.

At that moment, Scootaloo turned to see Rainbow Dash had finally caught up to her. She flew very fast just to stay at an equal pace with the speed demon, and noticed her flank. "Hey, nice cutie mark."

Scootaloo could never officially remember, to this day, the feeling of impacting the tree branch at that exact moment. The collision was actually so abrupt and so powerful that quite literally, memories were lost. It took her years to remember actually being launched from the sling shot, and when she awoke in her hospital bed, she literally screamed when she saw how she was no longer a blank flank.

She did however, had one moment of clarity that always made her laugh when looking back. She remembered walking into the emergency room with Rainbow Dash by her side, assisting her in any way she could. She remembered holding a bloody rag to her eye quite literally holding it in place making sure it didn't pop out of her skull while the rest of the rag soaked up blood. She remembered looking right into the amazed Nurse Betty's eyes, and shouting with a superior and self-righteous, borderline boastful tone while she propped up her flank on the counter, "HAS ANYPONY EVER SEEN A CUITE MARK THIS BUCKING AWESOME BEFORE!"

* * *

Meanwhile, Apple Bloom waited outside the door of Diamond Tiara's place. She felt completely nervous and out of place. 'Why am I even here?' she thought to herself in dismay. 'This is stupid, oh so bucking stupid. What am I going to gain out of this? A new friend? Could Diamond Tiara and I ever be friends? After what she put me through? She seemed so different at that art exhibit yesterday. She was like a changed pony. That couldn't have been real. I lost sleep because of that bucking moment. What am I doing?'

Nevertheless, Apple Bloom realized that she had a choice to make, and an appointment to keep. It was an obligation to follow through with her plan. And so, in the words of her great beloved sister, Apple Bloom decided to 'Nut up or shut,' and knocked on the door.

It took awhile for the door to be answered, but when it was, something extraordinary happened. As assumed, Diamond Tiara answered the door. It was her home after all. It seemed rather…..simple. For a mare like Diamond Tiara, that meant something. Maybe the time in poverty after her father was thrown in Jail actually shaped her and formed her personally. She still was a mare with excellent class though, as demonstrated by the fact she wore an elegant suit when answering the door.

"Oh Hi!" Diamond Tiara squealed when seeing that Apple Bloom had arrived. And that's when she pulled off the extraordinary move.

She reached out, and hugged Apple Bloom, in good will and in greetings.

Apple Bloom's mind was officially blown. Was there anything this pony wasn't going to do that would baffle her?

"So good to see you," she exclaimed as she let go of the amazed Apple Bloom.

"Um….yeah," Apple Bloom stated still feeling peculiar bizarre. "You too."

"So," Diamond Tiara announced as she set her fore hooves down. "Where's our ride?"

"Oh, Um," Apple Bloom exclaimed as she turned around to present her ride at the bottom of the steps leading up to Diamond Tiara's house. "I usually take a cab everywhere I go."

Diamond Tiara peered at the cab on the road, and felt strangely confused. "Really," she asked honestly and with no disrespect whatsoever. "I thought you could take like a big carriage or something."

Apple Bloom didn't know how to take the comment. On one hoof, it might have been a spoken slap to the face. On the other hoof, it was Diamond Tiara and maybe she didn't know better. She took it in stride and basically ignored the comment. "I can't really afford anything fancy."

Suddenly, Apple Bloom was amazed yet again by Diamond Tiara's antics. She grew a smile, a strange smile, one that could make a selected few of ponies uncomfortable. She then spoke directly to the cab carriage pullers, and stated, "You're free to go, your services are no longer needed."

The two cab carriage pullers glanced at each other, shrugged their shoulders, and simply went off into the night.

Apple Bloom was stunned. She didn't know what was going on or what the intentions were. Was Diamond Tiara trying to mess and harass her once more, or was it some bigger, deeper motive. When she turned her flabbergasted eyes towards Diamond Tiara's mischief eyes, she fully realized what her intentions were. And they were good.

"Want to ride in style?" she asked.

She followed Diamond into her garage, and when the lights came on, her jaw hit the floor. Apple Bloom had never seen a machine quite like this one. It was long, sturdy, lean and wide. It was black and had four tires. It was quite obviously a carriage, except, there was no driver. In fact, there was no place to dock the pullers. There was nothing, except the strangely shaped carriage.

"What in tarnation is this thing?" She asked amazed, with her southern farmer roots beginning to unleash themselves.

As she walked down the steps slowly, eyeing her instrument, she exclaimed her words with pride and happiness. "This machine right here my friend," she began, "Is the best thing money could buy. That's why my house seems so normal. I'm using most of my bits for the payments for this baby."

"What is it?" Applebloom asked once more.

"Feast your eyes on the first ever, Pony-less limousine," Diamond Tiara declared.

Apple Bloom's eyes began to water. It sounded so impossible, so untrue, and yet it was. She might've experienced poverty, but not for long. Diamond Tiara was now LOADED! "Seriously?" Apple Bloom screamed as her voiced cracked with excitement.

"Seriously," Diamond Tiara replied with a smile growing wider and smugger by the second.

"How does it work?" Apple Bloom asked.

"Well, you have two pedals right up front," Diamond explained. "One's for go, one's for no. and you press your peddles and turn a wheel and control your pony-less carriage. Sounds easy, I know. But trust me; they're rather difficult to run. That's why I have a special driver, who I'm going to pick up by the way, to take us to and from to concert. All we have to do," Diamond continued her spiel as she went to the back and opened the door, "is sit back and have a great bucking time." When she emerged from the door, and wine glass and a glass of alcohol was in her hand. "chardonnay?"

* * *

Scootaloo was waiting outside the door of the medical trailer, waiting for Jester to emerge. He was taking a long time and Scootaloo was growing rather impatient. It was only a broken snout. It wasn't like he fell and shattered into a million pieces. But still, the minutes ticked by and literally nothing was happening. She didn't want to go home, but she didn't want to be bored either. Something had to happen.

Then, just ahead in the distance, Scootaloo noticed a shimmering light appearing closer and closer. She was intrigued by this and covered her forehead to get a better glimpse in the dusk-light at what was approaching. That was when she realized that it wasn't one light, but two. And then she realized it was a carriage…..pulling itself.

"What the buck?" she stated in awe as she slowly walked out to meet it. It was a long carriage, and it reminded her of a limousine. But what shocked her the most, was still the fact that literally NOTHING was pulling it. Then, the vehicle stopped right when Scootaloo was by the back end. The window came down, and emerging from inside, was an old friend. And she was DRUNK!

"Need a lift," Apple Bloom exclaimed with a blush on her face, obviously tipsy from whatever she was consuming.

Scootlaloo bellowed in excitement a loud howl, and came towards the window to give Apple Bloom a much needed bro-hoof. "DUDE," Scootaloo hollered with enthusiasm. "YOU'RE RIDING IN STYLE MY FRIEND! OFFICAL SWAG TITLE IS HANDED TO YOU!"

Just then, at that moment, another pony appeared at the window. This one baffled Scootaloo for a moment. She recognized her, but didn't. She knew the face, but not the name. it troubled her some and so she brought that fact up to light.

"You are you?" she asked trying to sound polite.

The light pink pony held her hoof out the window asking for it to be shaken.

"Diamond Tiara at your service."

Scootaloo's mind was officially blown.

"Now," Diamond Tiara asked as she looked at the faces of her two new friends. "Who's up for a rock concert?"


	3. Mares on Parade

**Well folks, this is it. The finale chapter of, "Crusader Chronicles." After all, there are only three crusaders, so it should be fitting that there would only be three chapters. I had a lot of fun typing this and I hope you all had even more fun reading it. Please recommend this story to other friends on FIMfiction and review it as much as possible. Please follow me too because I have a lot of really good story ideas coming up for other fics. I think I may post this on my deviantart page as well, as soon as I can get some sketch art for each chapter. I have also posted this on fanfiction so if any of you are on that sight; please review it there as well. In the mean time, sit back, relax, and enjoy the finale chapter of "Crusader Chronicles."**

* * *

"aadslkfjasldkfhaosdhf….ahhhhhhhh….fjenrwkejnrksdnfsdnlmds,"

She vomited once again. She had been vomiting continuously now for the past 30 minutes. She couldn't help it. It was all impulse. It was all nerves. And yes, even though it was all bull she couldn't do anything about it. Her body naturally reacted to these situations like this; with heavy doses of continuous trumpet puking followed by a few tears of anxiety and then when it was all said and done, she would play a killer show. That's just how the world of professional musicianship worked for her, apparently.

Suddenly, she was able, for a few bleak seconds, to find a peaceful pause; a silent moment of bliss; where the pain dissipated and comfort returned and enveloped her mind once more. And it came with a talon lightly patting her on the back, while a wing draped over her shoulder. Sweetie Bell still sat there on the floor, half her face still hanging over the toilet, as her lead singer and close friend said some consolidating words; which was very rare.

"Relax kid," Gilda commanded nonchalantly towards Sweetie Bell. "You're a yacker. Always have and always will."

"Funny thing is," Sweetie Bell commented, "No matter how many shows I'll play, no matter how many interviews I'll give, it will always taste like some deformed version of spinach salad."

And with that, her body reacted as if on cue, with more vomit.

"Sweet Celestia," Gilda commented in an open gasp as she studied the contents of the toilet bowl. The vomit was so red it almost looked nuclear. "What have you been eating?"

"I thought some Black Cherry Alcohol might take the edge off tonight's performance," Sweetie Bell retorted.

Gilda laughed. "Bad idea kid. Going on a stage drunk usually ends in disaster."

Sweetie Bell laughed as she flushed the toilet; feeling that all familiar feeling of that burn in her stomach, telling her that her routine was over and it was now time for phase two; the actual performance. "Yeah, you of all people should know the dangers of going on stage drunk."

Gilda laughed. This girl had spunk, talent, and quick wit. That was probably why they became friends so quickly once she joined the band. "It's different for me. All I have to do is rap and scream. That doesn't take much. You on the other hand, have some guitar solos to pull off. Just imagine one of your guitars solo's while hammered."

"Maybe you're right," Sweetie replied as she stood up.

"I know I am," Gilda replied with a smirk.

_Typical Gilda, _Sweetie Bell thought to herself. She honestly didn't know why her older sister hated Gilda so long ago. Of course, Gilda made her amends to Rarity and her friends including and especially Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie for whatever Gilda must've done in the past. Gilda was now practically a member of the family and she, along with the rest of the guys in the band, was allowed to hang around. Still, Sweetie Bell couldn't shake this feeling that Gilda and Rarity must've had some bad past together. That'd explain why Rarity reacted so strangely when Sweetie first met Gilda. She could remember that experience like it had happened only yesterday. It was a very memorable day after all. It was also the same day Sweetie received her cutie mark.

* * *

The set of events which lead up to Sweetie Bell's cutie mark began two weeks before the actual date. And it all began when Rarity and some of her friends had their annual tea with Mr. Fancy pants. After the Royal Wedding, Rarity had re-established contacted with Fancy Pants and by doing so, they became close friends once again. They became so close that eventually, twice a month, Rarity would go out of her way to meeting Fancy Pants at his elaborate, luxurious and beautiful house for an afternoon of tea and casual conversation. It was on that particular day, two weeks before Sweetie Bell got her cutie mark, that Rainbow dash got to visit Fancy Pants's place for the first time.

Rarity felt as though she made a huge mistake.

She hated using such a derogatory term to describe her friend, but honestly, Rainbow Dash just didn't know her place. A house guest respects the home. A house guest is quiet in their motions and calm with their expressions. Rainbow Dash, on the other hand, acted like a feral mare, and just couldn't stop touching anything. Just one piece of furniture. Just one. Could Rainbow Dash just not stop touching everything? Apparently so, because for the next 2 and a half hours, Rainbow Dash proceeded to touch every piece of art and pottery around the mansion, humiliating and embarrassing Rarity in front of Fancy Pant's.

The well-established Fancy Pants just watched the turn of events with a smile, laughing once and a while. That was why he and Rarity became such close friends. He was a forgiving stallion. A kind and sweet and gentle stallion, who knew pony's for what they were and didn't care how they treated him just as long as he treated them with kindness and respect.

After the first thirty minutes of the grand tour, the group finally managed to sit down and have polite conversation. And thus began the conversation which changed everyone's lives forever.

"So Rainbow Dash," Fancy Pants began as his butler poured her more cider, which was her choice of drink when asked if she would like anything else besides tea. "I heard that you've now finally been accepted into the Wonderbolts."

The correct definition of the term to describe the noise which Rainbow Dash made upon hearing those words, would've been 'squeam.' "I know. It's been, like, my dream forever and now I finally got in. I can't believe it either." She started smiling a smile that could've warmed the hearts of millions, while simultaneously scaring the living daylights out of others.

"Is there any special process of events that one must have to go through when joining?" Fancy Pants acquired.

Rainbow Dash paused and thought about this for a moment. "Not really. I mean, there's the usual initiation process that every newbie has to go through. I couldn't sit for like a week. But honestly, that's all. Save for the fact that we have to develop an identity."

"Pardon?" Fancy Pant's asked, not fully sure what Rainbow Dash meant by that.

"Oh well, when you join the Wonderbolts you have to designate what makes you, you," Rainbow Dash described. "You see, each member of the Wonderbolts has something different and charismatic about them. Really, it all comes down to what move becomes you're signature move and what song introduces you over the loud speakers."

"I suppose that you're signature move is the sonic rainboom, correct?" Rarity asked.

"Actually, no. I haven't fully decided on that one yet. But I've already picked the song."

"Which is?" Fancy Pants asked.

"Oh, um… "The Blister Exists by SlipFoal." Rainbow Dash replied. To which Rarity responded with the roll of her eyes along with a strange disappointed sigh.

"Honestly, I don't see what you see in that sort of music," Rarity told Rainbow Dash. "I mean, the music sounds so plebeian and is just too crazy for any sane mare to bear, don't you agree?" She asked Fancy Pants with the last question.

And that's when he surprised everypony in the room, including the butlers, which practically knew Fancy Pants their entire lives. "Actually, no. I love SlipFoal and I've seen them twice in concert."

A pin could've been dropped a mile away and still, everyone could've picked up the noise. That was how quiet the room became with Fancy Pant's reply. "…..What?" Rarity asked in disbelieve. It just sounded so absurd. Fancy Pants, one of the most popular and famous ponies in Canterlot, save for the actual Princesses themselves, listening to…SlipFoal? The heavy metal band? The band notorious for their wild stage antics and use of fake blood and pyrotechnics? Fancy Pants saw them in concert? Fancy Pants paid for a ticket?

Rainbow Dash, however, was most amused. "Well, look what we've got here. We got a rocker on our hands."

Fancy pants smiled and simply gave a polite head nod. "Please, please. I'm not as they call them, a metal head. But I've had my fair share of problems as a foal and when I was at my lowest; heavy metal music actually picked me up the most."

"So what are some of your favorite bands?" Rainbow Dash asked as Fancy Pant's as his butler came by and refilled his cup with tea.

"Of all time or just metal bands?" He asked politely.

"Just metal bands," Rainbow Dash replied. She was now leaning in, paying supreme close attention to each word Fancy Pants was saying.

"Let me think for a moment," He said as he leaned his eyes down, thinking very intuitively about the question. "It's been a long time ago." He replied. "I usually listened to metal bands in my youth. However, there is a new group out which I'm particularly enjoying. They call themselves, 'one day as a griffon,' and they're incredible."

"What's their music like?" Rainbow Dash asked.

That's when Fancy Pants shot them a look that confused and baffled both Rarity and Rainbow Dash. He raised one of his brows, as if confused and bewildered himself. Then, after a strange and melodramatic pause which seemed to have lasted ages, he continued. "It's like a combination of rock and hip hop. There are only 3 members in the band. There's the bass player, the drummer, and the lead singer who also performs the electric piano. But honestly, I just can't believe that you haven't heard of them before Rainbow Dash."

Rainbow Dash paused mid-sip through her cider. She placed the cup back and this time, it was her who shot the inquisitive look at Fancy Pants. "Why's that?" she asked.

"Well, you and the lead singer are friends right?" Fancy Pants stated.

"….what?" Rainbow Dash asked confused by the situation. _She knew a lead singer in a metal band?_

Fancy Pants shook his head, as if he was trying to evaluate the situation he was in. it seemed as everything he assumed to be true had just been proven false. "I just can't believe it. I mean, I could've sworn that you and Gilda Griffon were roommates in Flight School."

Rarity and Rainbow Dash bother heard the sound of glass shattering. Of course, that was all just an illusion their minds pulled on them. They were just so completely shocked by what Fancy Pants said that they felt they had just lost their minds. Their eyes went wide and their jaws smacked the floor and stayed there, gaping open. "…WHAT!" they both replied.

Fancy Pants lead them both into his music room where vast amounts of albums, sheet music, and instruments alike filled the room. Amongst the records, he pulled out a particular one. It was a CD/DVD pack of something. When he showed them the cover, they realized that it was the band 'One day as a Griffon.' And then, after opening the case and shuffling through photo's they found it. They both couldn't believe it, but there it was; black and white and with a scowl that clearly showed that it could be no one else on the page. Gilda Griffon was a lead singer in a rock band.

Before they left, Fancy Pants handed them both a copy of the CD along with the DVD which played some of their music videos. It was just so strange. They all listened to a couple of the track and honestly, as much as their resentment to Gilda could cloud their judgment, she was a pretty good songwriter and singer. In fact, she was particularly amazing. The lyrics had a lot of meaning to them and were well thought out and written. Her singing, while mostly just rapping, had a ferociousness and rage behind them that could only have belong to none other than Gilda. It was as if on each song, she was eating the microphone, tearing it apart, and spiting it out back whole. And the particular musicianship of the band as a whole was just astonishing. Each thing, the bass, the drums, the keys, and the rapping, all worked together to create fantastic music.

But Rarity could no longer listen to them again after that afternoon in Fancy Pant's mansion.

Rainbow Dash eventually went on later that week to forgive Gilda. And when they would meet again, they both would concurrently forgive each other.

But Rarity needed more time. She just still couldn't handle the fact that this Griffon, this Griffon who came into Ponyville and wreaked havoc, was now a lead singer in a band. More importantly, she just couldn't believe that she was actually any good. When she got home to her boutique, she placed the DVD into a drawer where she kept the rest of some movies she owned, and then went to bed. She honestly didn't think about hiding the DVD any more. She didn't feel any need to conceal the movie any more than it already was.

She should have. Or maybe, it was for best that it was left out in the open. For because of this, it would help push Sweetie Bell down the path towards her cutie mark.

* * *

The next morning, Rarity was sick. She didn't know what it was. The common cold maybe? A terrible case of the flu? Whatever it was, it left her deprived of energy and made her unable to get out of bed the next day. She had to call Spike to help her cancel orders or at least postpone them until she was better. Spike took good care of her, treating to her every need. But eventually, everything that she was asking for could've been settled with just good companionship, which is what Spike brought.

However, this sickness lasted for two days. And on the second day, she had so little strength, that she couldn't even tell her little sister, 'no, we are not having a crusader's campout tonight in my boutique.'

So of course, the campout continued as planned. The only thing added to the list of agenda's for the crusaders was for them not to, under any circumstances, disturb Rarity from her slumber. She was extremely tired and couldn't do much of anything. Which is why, of course, when Sweetie Bell entered her room, asking if they could watch a movie that night, she didn't put up any fight whatsoever.

Sweetie looked around her sister's room, and when looking into a drawer, she found a particular item that aroused her curiosity. It was a DVD with a picture of a talon scrapping what appeared to be an amplifier. And at the very top of the case, light blue titles read 'one day as a griffon: collection of music videos.'

Sweetie remembered coming down with the DVD that night and showing it to all of her friends. She remembered the giddiness she possessed as she waved it around in enjoyment. She remembered that not one of them had any idea or vague conception of what a Griffon was. But, they knew that the cover had a picture of a talon cutting up an amp, so that had to have meant that this movie was going to be awesome.

She also remembered, from that night, the exact moment when the movie began to play. And Sweetie Bell's world would never be the same again.

It was music that Sweetie Bell had never experienced before. It was powerful, overwhelming, and it was simply in your face. The music had no end point. After each song, you craved more. What really completed the musical experience for Sweetie Bell, was the fact that the music was filled with emotion. But it was an emotion that Sweetie never saw in music. It was anger; pure, downright, unfiltered anger. and being a young, confused mare at the time with no cutie mark, there was no better emotion to place in those songs.

She…LOVED…..it.

The next day, Rarity was feeling much better. The sickness appeared to be out of her system, and she was actually able to have the strength to walked downstairs and fix breakfast. Meeting her at the kitchen table, was her little sister, and in front of her was…oh sweet Celestia no. did she watch that last night?

Sweetie bell looked up at Rarity, whose mouth hang open in shock. And as they made eye contact, Sweetie said only 4 words.

"I need a guitar."

And so, 5 days later, after Sweetie Bell had acquired the money through some daily chores around the house, Sweetie went out and bought herself her first guitar. It was a nice one too. Sweetie Bell was able to pick up on the guitar and learn it very quickly. She mostly played by ear, but learning chords and reading tab charts just came naturally to her as well. Even Rarity was surprised by how quickly Sweetie Bell was able to play, and play well. A lot of unicorns used magic to pluck the strings, seeing as how having no fingers to form the chords or clutch the pick made it almost impossible to play. But Sweetie Bell astounded everyone by the fact that she could play with her bare hooves alone. Eventually, the guitar became part of an everyday routine with her. Go to School, hang out with friends, homework, and then guitar.

About 10 days had passed by since Sweetie Bell first saw 'One day as a Griffon,' on DVD. And she kept up to date with the latest news of that band, much to the disappointment of Rarity. However, there was one piece of news that slipped by her. And it was revealed to her at a crusader campout. At the club house, Apple Bloom opened up with, "So Sweetie, did you hear about the latest news?"

Sweetie Bell was confused. "What news?"

"You know, the news involving 'One Day as a Griffon?'" Apple Bloom continued.

Sweetie Bell smiled and cocked her head. She always kept up to date with the latest in 'One Day as a Griffon,' News; considering how they had became her favorite band. But, deciding to let Apple Bloom rejoice in saying the words, Sweetie replied, "No. No I haven't."

"Well, they broke up," Apple Bloom commented.

Sweetie's eyes enlarged themselves by three times their normal size. She looked as though she had seen a ghost. She ran up to Apple Bloom's face and, while staring at her dead in the eyes, she screamed, "WHAT!"

Apple Bloom was not shocked to see this kind of reaction from Sweetie Bell. However, she was still taken back by how forcefully Sweetie went up to her face. Apple Bloom, in this position, began to explain. "They're not completely shattered. Their just changing their name."

Now, Sweetie was less shocked but more intrigued. "Changing their name?"

"Yeah," Apple Bloom stated. "Yeah, apparently, Gilda was getting sick of playing the keys so she decided to ditch them off to the side and work solely on song writing and vocals. The rest of the band was a little concerned with the fact that the keys were gone; being that the keys had been such a crucial key element in their music. And so, they decided that if there was going to be no keys, there was no 'One day as a Griffon.' Their still together, but they are changing their name and becoming an entirely new band with an entirely new sound."

"Huh….." Sweetie stood for a while in shock. The news didn't sadden her, nor did it enrage her. It just made her feel…..strange. "That's…kind of odd."

"Yeah, but now get this," Apple Bloom said with excitement. "I heard that they really need a guitar player, but that they are looking for fresh new faces and young talent. And so, they are holding open try outs for the public."

Sweetie Bell could've passed out at that moment. It sounded way too good to be true. She felt excitement tingle throughout her body. Her favorite band was looking for a new guitar player. Maybe she could be the one. However, as part of her brain jumped to the conclusion that she could achieve her wildest dreams, another part of her brain, the rational side, concluded that it was strictly fantasy. Firstly, what would a great band want to do with a blank flank? And secondly, she didn't even know where they were having their try-outs.

She didn't have to. For as soon as those words were uttered by Apple Bloom, something strange happened. Sweetie Bell's horn began to glow. It had a strange aurora of white light and looked as though she was about to exploded. Everyone in the club house stood in shock as they saw this happened to their friend. They paused, unsure of what was going to happen next. Suddenly, Sweetie's guitar, which was perched in the corner, picked itself up magically by itself, and strapped itself upon Sweetie's back.

Scootaloo raised an eyebrow. "Sweetie, what are you doing?" she asked.

Sweetie, even more shocked than the rest of them, said with a pleading voice, "I don't know! I can't control it!" and then, all of a sudden, she began to get pulled by her horn. Her body was dragged by her hooves towards the club house door. Apple Bloom, sensing that something was amiss, immediately pounced upon Sweetie Bell and held her back as soon as she began to move.

"Sweetie, where you going?" Apple Bloom asked as she began to feel the actual pull that was happening in Sweetie's body.

"I don't know," Sweetie screamed in fear. "It's like my horn has a mind of its own."

"Does this usually happen to unicorns frequently?" Scootaloo asked as she assisted Apple Bloom as well.

"No," Sweetie replied. "This only happened once with my sister, remember? And when it happened it…." And that's when it clicked in Sweetie Bell's brain. This was her destiny. Her horn was about to lead her to her cutie mark. So, with a smile that could've sent millions of warriors fleeing the battlefield, Sweetie Bell chuckled and exclaimed, "Girls, I'll be fine."

"What?" Both Apple Bloom and Scootaloo asked in shock.

"Just let me go," Sweetie commanded. "Go find my sister and tell that I'll be fine. And don't forget to mention this."

"Mention what?" Apple Bloom asked as both her and Scootaloo obeyed Sweetie Bell's request and let her go.

Sweetie Bell went forward and her magic, which was beyond her control, opened the door of the club house for her, and lead her out the door. As she moved along the country side, toward whatever the future had in stored for her, she screamed to her friends, "DESTINY AWAITS!"

* * *

She traveled for what seemed like ages. It was only two days, but with the combination of no food and no water, Sweetie felt as though she was losing her mind. This magic stuff really needed to work out like a break time; like, a time for at least a sandwich. But she received nothing, and so, two days later, when she found herself finally stopped in front of a strange door in a strange house in Canterlot, Sweetie Bell didn't even think about where it was she was at, and only thought, 'Does this place offer food?'

Suddenly, the door in front of her opened. And that's when Sweetie Bell recognized the place. 'Oh no….oh dear luna no….no.' she recognized the place, for she recognized the person standing in front of her. She was tall, extremely tall for even a lady; but then again, this woman was a Griffon so being tall was a given. She had on aviator shades which blocked out her eyes and in her talons was a cigarette. She examined Sweetie Bell for a second, and then turned her head around and spoke to whoever was inside.

"Hey Guys, looks like we got another one," Gilda proclaimed.

A few second later, one stallion and one dragon showed up right alongside Gilda. The Stallion was brown with a blond mane, and the dragon was black with a yellow under belly and spines. Their names were Beats and Thunder; the drummer and bass players for 'One day as a Griffon.'

"Another one up for auditions?" Beats the dragon asked as her twirled the drumsticks around in his hands.

"Well no duh," Gilda pointed out as she motioned her hands towards the terribly frightened and petrified Sweetie Bell. "I mean, why else would she have on a guitar?"

"Hey kid," Thunder asked as he flicked his mane out of his eyes. "You know who we are?"

Sweetie Bell tried to speak, but her voice cracked and it came out in a whisper. "You're….you…..are…"

"Hey Kid," Gilda asked as she snapped her fingers, wondering what was up with this strange mare in front of them. Was she psychotic? "You ok?"

And to this day, Sweetie Bell is still embarrassed when this moment gets brought up in conversation. The first words, the first words out of her mouth, as she was standing right in front of the band she worshipped, apparently ready for an audition, the first words that went flying were, "….do you guys have food?"

There was a slight pause from the entire group as they just stood there and processed what Sweetie Bell had said. Then, like an explosion, they erupted with laughter. "That's rich," Gilda proclaimed as she wiped away a tear from her eye. "Sure kid. We got food. Follow us inside. Maybe if you play a good enough guitar solo, we might fix you a sandwich."

At that's how Sweetie Bell found herself sitting across from her favorite band in a recording studio while eating a sandwich.

"So kid," Gilda began as she wrote down something on a piece of paper. The entire band was eyeballing Sweeite Bell at this point, analyzing her, seeing if she had that certain something that this band needed. "Where you from?"

"Ponyville," Sweetie Bell replied.

Gilda immediately picked up on that. "Oh, really?" she asked with a smile that symbolized nostalgia, not anger. She no longer felt hatred for those of Ponyville. It had been replaced long ago with memories and curiosity. "So how's Rainbow Dash?"

Sweeite cocked her brow. "She's fine, as far as I know. But she lives in Cloudsdale," Sweetie mentioned.

"I know," Gilda said as she continued to write. "But I know that she hangs out a lot with the residence of Ponyville so you've probably seen her more than those who live in Cloudsdale."

"How do you know Rainbow Dash?" Sweetie Bell asked completely out of curiosity.

Without missing a beat and or looking up from her paper, Gilda commented. "Me and her were roommates back in Flight School."

…Sweetie Bell's mind = blown. She just couldn't believe it. The mare that was already 20% cooler than everyone else just got 20% even more cooler. Would that make her 40% cooler? It was hard to say. But whatever the case, Sweetie Bell's head was swimming at the time so it was hard for her to work out exact math.

Then, finally, she looked up at Sweetie Bell, placing her pen down. The rest of her band mates copied this action as well. "So…..Sweetie Bell…..if that is your actual name…how well can you play the guitar?"

Sweetie reacted simply off instinct. It was only until later did she realize how silly she sounded. "Oh, I'm very good. I've only been playing for 5 days and I'm already better than most people I know who play guitar."

A small cough of hilarity could be heard coming from Beats. Thunder was trying his hardest to suppress a smirk. Even Gilda found the situation somewhat humorous. But out of all of them, oddly enough, it was Gilda who was able to cool them down and continue by saying, "Alright everyone. Alright." Then, looking at Sweetie Bell once again, and with the biggest welcoming attitude that she could possibly muster, Gilda told Sweetie Bell, "So here's what we need you to do. Take your guitar and if it's acoustic just start playing away. If not, we have a batter operated amplifier and a small chord in the back, just take them up with you. Got that?"

On the surface, Sweetie Bell looked calm and controlling of her emotions as she smiled politely, gave a head nod, and went to the back to grab the amp and chord. On the inside, it was a whole other story. She felt as though any second now, she was going to throw up. What made it the worst was the fact that she felt her legs starting to buckle. On top of that, she knew that the rest of the band was getting a kick out of her. She was just going to embarrass herself. She was right about one thing, the band mates were trying their hardest to hide their smirks and chuckles, but it couldn't be helped. Even Gilda was thinking the same thing. 'We are about to watch a lamb being brought to slaughter.'

Sweetie got the amp, plugged it in…..

And blew their minds!

She was just incredible. Gilda felt her jaw go slack and her mouth came open in shock when Sweetie began to play. She started out with what appeared to be a riff of some sort; but riffs were never meant to be that fast and or intricate. It was like she was coming from another world. This was just amazing. Then came her actually solo and that was really stunning. It was hard to believe she was playing all those notes with just one hoof. Maybe she was using her magic to help her. Gilda, in a daze, looked at Sweetie Bell's horn, and then back down at Sweetie Bell's hoof, and recognized that her suspicions were true. This was all natural playing and Dear Celestia was it good.

But the part that blew everyone away; the part that set her apart from the other guitarists the band had seen, was what she did next. It would eventually become her trade mark, signature, guitar move, where if anypony were to copy it from then on, another would reply, "Oh, are you trying to play like Sweetie Bell?"

Sweetie Bell, while holding down a chord, turned the volume of the rhythm side of her pick-ups all the way down, while keeping the treble side as loud as possible. Then, she dropped her pick. She would no longer need it. She dragged one hoof across the strings while the other flipped the knob between the two pickups frantically. This created a catastrophic effect where the guitar sounded no longer like a guitar, but more like a turn table. DJ PON3 would've been supremely impressed. It was magnificent.

Gilda jumped up when this happened, and began to wave her arms about. "Whoa, whoa, whoa!" she screamed as this new, delightful sound struck her ears. Sweetie, noticing this, stopped immediately and ducked her head down low in embarrassment. What did she do wrong?

"How long have you been playing again?" Gilda asked baffled.

"5 days," Sweetie Bell announced timidly.

"And you pull THAT off?" Gilda proclaimed now even more excited than ever. "Damn Kid, you got some talent!"

"I say we let her in," Thunder commented.

"Yep," Beats added. "There's nowhere for this to go but up," he stated this as he rested his head and began to lean back on his chair.

Gilda then held out her talon, a gesture rarely seen by many who knew Gilda, but it was appropriate. Sweetie stared at the talon, flabbergasted. 'Is this really happening?' she thought. 'Is this real?'

"Kid, welcome to the newest band to hit the airwaves. Welcome, to RAGE," Gilda then shook the dumbfounded pony's fore-hoof.

Suddenly, a white light emitted from Sweetie Bell's flank and a strange tingly sensation filled her head. And then, suddenly, that white light flooded the room.

* * *

"SWEETIE BELL!" Rarity screamed as she ran through the street's of Canterlot. She was frantic. "SWEETIE BELL! WHERE HAVE YOU GONE?" after the news of what had happened to Sweetie Bell reached the ears of Rarity, she rounded up a search party of her, the rest of the main six, the rest of the cutie mark crusaders, and Big Macintosh, and they began to search far and wide for her sister. They found the track of where Sweetie's magic pulled the poor filly from the clubhouse and followed it into Canterlot. But once they got inside the city, the tracks stopped because they couldn't be seen. She was basically being pulled across marble, not dirt. So the group separated and tried to find the filly following their own paths. Rarity took a fairly simply approach, and just decided to run around the city frantically screaming her head off. Eventually, someone would be bound to notice her and help her out at least.

But this didn't seem to work and after a few hours of desperate searching, she resorted to crawling into a corner and crying. It was all hopeless. She would never find her sister in this glamorous city. It was over. No one could hear her cries. The city was frankly just too loud.

And that's when she noticed something. She picked up on a noise that she never thought she would hear in the city. Music, but not just any music; rock music. And it was coming from far away. She curiously followed the noise until she found herself in front of a strange house. It was placed in the middle of nowhere. No other houses were besides it, and it kind of just stood out in the middle of the street. On top of that, it wasn't even a big house and in Canterlot, that was a rarity. *wink wink*

Standing outside the door, Rarity raised her hoof to knock on the door, when she realized that it was open just a tad. She had a minor self conflict with herself about what she was going to do next. After all, in legal terms, what she was about to do was considered breaking and entering. But, feeling the strangest of needs rising up in her, she pushed the door open even more, and walked inside.

It was then she realized that she had just stumbled into what appeared to be a record studio. There was a desk in the front where a receptionist would usually set, but there was also a sign which stated 'be back in 30,' so the mare was probably on a lunch break.

Rarity continued following the source of the noise, and it lead her upstairs, and into a room where she received the biggest shock of them all. She found herself looking into a room, where Gilda Griffon sat. It didn't take long for the Griffon to notice her, and as soon as the two made eye contact, rarity received an even bigger shock.

The Griffon was happy to see her.

She obligingly opened the door and brought her inside the both. As she did so, she talked frantically about some new tour or something to do with an album. But what struck her oddly enough was that she was directing these things towards her, as though she had something to do with them. "Yeah, and she walked in," Gilda continued. "And we were all thinking that this kid was just going to eat it but holy crap, she is super good! We've been writing songs all afternoon for the new album and I think we'll end up using most if not all the material we've written today. She's a natural, but you probably know what I'm talking about."

"I'm sorry," Rarity said with a polite demon and she pushed the griffon away. "But whose 'she?'"

And then…..

"Hi Sis!" Sweetie Bell exclaimed.

Rarity turned her head, and saw someone who looked like her sister behind the glass, but it couldn't be her sister. She just couldn't. First of all, she had never seen her sister that happy before. Secondly, she never wore hats and third of all, and most importantly, her sister had not received her cutie mark. This mare obviously had a cutie mark, and a strange one at that. It was a guitar that appeared to have been set on fire. She didn't know if that meant her talent included destroying guitars or what, but whatever the case, it just proved that this figure, though eerily very similar to Sweetie Bell, could not have been Sweetie Bell.

But then Rarity took a good long look at her face. And then noticed the guitar. And then she remembered where Sweetie got that guitar, and knew at that moment, that this person behind the glass was none other than her sister. And she had just received her cutie mark…playing for Gilda Griffon.

The stress was just too much, and Rarity passed out.

* * *

When Apple Bloom, Scootaloo, and Diamond Tiara stumbled out of their limousine a little dazed from the backseat partying, they realized that they were the only ones there who looked…..normal. With the exception of their limousine, everypony who was at this event was dressed in much esteemed attire and was brought in with nothing less than elegance. The carts looked fantastic. The ponies looked amazingly rich. This confused Apple Bloom greatly. Were these ponies going to see the wrong band? This was RAGE; the same band that ended every show with pyrotechnics and destruction of equipment. These high and mighty, rich, elegant ponies, were going to go see THAT BAND?

As Apple Bloom contemplated the audience that was going to witness tonight's performance, she felt a hoof pat her on the back as Diamond Tiara spoke. "Welcome to Equestrienne Hall; the most extravagant, expensive, and elegant music hall in all of Equestria."

"Hard to believe a band like RAGE is going to perform here tonight," Scootaloo commented.

"Keep in mind its Princess Luna's Birthday Celebration," Apple Bloom replied. "I heard that she's a big heavy metal queen."

They stood outside and looked at the crowd gathering in for a few more minutes. It was still a strange sight to see. Monocles, top hats, bowties and elegant gowns were being brought in to see possibly one of the most quote unquote 'layman,' bands of the century. Then, Diamond Tiara smiled.

"You still got the tickets?" she asked Apple Bloom.

This snapped her out of her transfixed phase and she began to riffle through her purse for the envelope which contained the tickets. Once she found it, she pulled it out in extreme excitement. "Got it,"

"Alright then," Diamond Tiara announced as she rounded up her 'friends.' "Let's head on in."

Once they got inside, they realized that the hall had been altered quite tremendously for tonight's show. The music hall was somewhat in the style of an Opera Hall. There were about three floors of seating along with a contemporary ground floor for those who wanted to get an up-close view of the stage. But for tonight, the entire ground floor seating chairs had disappeared. This not only baffled Apple Bloom and her gang, but those starting to come in as well. Some recipients would ask ushers the meaning for this transaction. Others would simply pile into the middle just standing up. Apple Bloom immediately recognized this as a mosh pit and immediately smiled in deviousness. _'So Sweetie Bell wants to see if these stiffs can bust loose,'_ she thought. _'Clever Girl.'_

Apple Bloom, Scootaloo, and Diamond Tiara were on the second level. After all, that's where the hall went into. One had to go 'underground,' to get to the floor seating, just like in a stadium. They scanned the area for quite some time, looking at the people coming in while also trying to find some adequate seating. And then, they spotted something strange.

"Holy Discord," Scootaloo breathed as she saw the sight bestowed in front of her. "Is that who I think it is?"

Near the ledge, a table was sat up. It was a stylish table, made of wood, that seemed to have been transported from some type of established royal dining facility. 5 chairs were put into place. Two of the chairs were occupied…..by none other than Princess Celestia and Princess Luna.

"What the?" Apple Bloom was simply speechless. They were on the same row as ROYALTY!

As the three stared in awe at this fantastic sight, Princess Luna turned around. The three literally did the 'look-away' and averted their eyes hoping to Celestia (even though she was sitting right in front of them) that Luna didn't catch them staring. Unbeknownst to them, Luna did the exact same thing. After a little while, Apple Bloom, Scootaloo, and Princess Tiara got back into a normal stance. As they looked at the princess while trying to look normal, they noticed that she began leaning over to her sister, and started whispering to her. It was strange. What made it even stranger was the way she acted as she whispered to Celestia. It was as if she was trying to inform her of someone while they were standing close to her.

And then they noticed Luan's eyes, and how they kept twitching back to them.

And Scootaloo got it, and almost shrieked in excitement. "I think she's talking to Princess Celestia about us."

And then, the princesses got up from their chairs, turned around, eyed the group down, and started approaching them.

Their legs started to buckle and feel wobbly. Any second now, they would be unable to support themselves up. The very idea of what was even taking place was so unrealistic that in their excitement, the three started to question whether they were even in reality anymore. They were about to talk….to royalty.

Once the princesses stood in front of them, all other sound became obsolete, save for Princess Luna's own voice. "Excuses me," Luna began. "Is thou art the artist Apple Bloom?"

Even though Apple Bloom and Scootaloo could rarely ever understand Royal lingo, they picked up on it almost immediately. "Yes?" Apple Bloom replied.

And then, a great surprise happened. The Princess held out her hoof, awaiting for it to be shaken. "My sister and I are great admirers of your work," Princess Celestai stated. "We find it absolutely dazzling."

Apple Bloom was going to freak. Timidly, trying to hide her own excitement, she began to shake their hooves. "Thank you. Thank you very much."

"Why in fact," Princess Celestia continued. "My sister and I were going to attend your auction in Ponyville. It was yesterday if I'm not mistaken right?"

Apple Bloom would remember the date all too well. It was where Diamond Tiara showed up after all. "Yes," the country pony replied.

"How was it?" Princess Luna acquired.

Now, Apple Bloom was going to be nonchalant about the whole situation. She was going to reply with something stereotypical, such as _'it was ok,_' and just continue on with the conversation normally. But before Apple Bloom could even get a word in edge wise, Diamond Tiara responded with something that made everyone's eyes go wide. "It was terrible," Diamond Tiara spoke. "She never got up to original asking price with any of her portraits. One of her best ones she wanted 60 bits for and no one would even pay up to 50."

"Oh, I'm sorry to hear that," Luna announced.

"Yeah, it was bad. I eventually got one of her paintings over the original asking price." Diamond spoke. Apple Bloom continued to look at her wide eyed, trying to figure out just what this pony had planned. "I just wish there was something we could do to get more cash."

Then, it hit Apple Bloom. 'is she…trying to get me a job offer from the princesses?'

It worked like a charm. After thinking for a while, Princess Luna responded. "Actually there is."

"There is?" Princess Celestia asked, unsure of what even her own sister was thinking.

"There is?" Apple Bloom and Scootaloo stated with wide frantic eyes.

"Well you see," the princess of the night began. "Princess Cadence and Shinning Armor are expecting their first child soon, and as tradition, we usually welcome every single newest member of the royal family with a photo of some sort. Maybe we can break some mold. Apple Bloom, would you like to paint the family Portrait of Princess Cadence, Shinning Armor, and their new child?"

Apple Bloom was on the verge of passing out. "That….th-th-th-that would be w-wonderful."

"Great," Princess Luna stated with a smile. "it will surely be nice to have one of my favorite artists painting a picture of such close value to me."

Apple Bloom could've blushed. The comments were flattering. "Why thank you," she said.

"So, why you guys sitting up here?" Scootaloo asked. "Is it like a royalty thing?"

"Somewhat," Princess Celestia stated.

"What are the other three chairs for?" Scootaloo continued, now feeling comfortable talking to royalty.

"Oh, those are for Twilight Sparkle, Princess Cadence, and Shining Armor actually," Princess Celestia replied with a smile.

Apple Bloom cackled. "Really? Has Twilight Sparkle ever seen this band or heard them before?" Apple Bloom asked this with the biggest smirk ever.

"Not at all," Princess Luna stated with a smile. "MY sister invited her and she's coming, hoping to achieve a 'cultural experience.'"

"She sure will," Scootaloo commented under her breath with an equally large smirk.

"Wait, how do you know this band?" the Night Princess asked curiously.

"We were friend's with Sweetie Bell all the way from Elementary school to High School," Apple Bloom proclaimed. It only took a few seconds to realize that not EVERYONE in her group tonight was considered a 'friend.'

Luna's expression was priceless. They had never seen a member of Royalty look so excited before. "Are you serious?" the Princess asked, trying to retain all her emotions.

"Yeah," Apple Bloom responded.

Suddenly, something strange happened. The princesses once again began having a conversation in silence. They whispered something to each other very quickly. And then, afterwards, they looked back at Apple Bloom and Scootaloo. "You know," Princess Luna began. "Cadence and Armor are running a little behind schedule so…..on the occasion if they don't show up…would you guys like to sit with us?"

Apple Bloom was about ready to pounce on the offer immediately, when out of nowhere, Diamond Tiara astounded her friends once more. "Thanks for the offer," she began, "but actually, we are going to go to the ground floor tonight. I feel like moshing."

_'Is there anything this pony can't do to surprise me?'_ Apple Bloom thought to herself.

* * *

Meanwhile, backstage, the band prepared for another concert. They stretched out, they limbered up, and they took as many fluids as they could into their bodies as possible. Most of the time, all the band members drank water, but Gilda, along with her water, also knocked down a shot of flaming Everclear to get the adrenaline going through her body. If she was going to be the demonized, destructive stage presence she was on stage tonight, then she needed to be extra hyperactive, and nothing arouses the body more so than drinking FIRE!

Sweetie Bell, however, had a different approach to these moments. After the excessive vomiting, she would follow the rest of her band mates out onto stage and would take a seat behind the curtains, and began to get into what she and Gilda called, 'The Zone.' The Zone was a strange place. A place of no thoughts, no sights, and no sounds. It was like a strange form of meditation, but even in meditation, one would recite a mantra. Sweetie Bell recited nothing. She took in nothing as well. No lights, no sounds, no thoughts. Just nothingness. It was true rebirth, because after a couple of seconds in the zone, each show would feel greater and better than the last. It was as if she was replaying her first gig all over again.

Thunder and Beats took a very different approach when show time would arrive. They both simply acted…..normal. Thunder, at this point in time, was peeping out of the curtain studying the audience that was coming in. "Sweet Celestia," he commented. "Everyone out there looks like a bucking stiff."

Suddenly, Gilda was finished with her stretching. She placed her wing and talon out, and proclaimed, "Alright everyone. Band huddle."

It was a tradition amongst the band members to get into the huddle before every show. It helped them stop being 4 beings and instead become one. A powerful entity known as 'Rage!' they all placed in their hooves, talons, and claws. When Beats placed in his claw, that's when Gilda noticed something out of the ordinary.

"What the buck is that?" she asked Beats more out of shock and less out of anger.

Beats shrugged as she looked at the gloves he was wearing. "I thought I'd wear them tonight. It would give me more of a theatrical feeling." The gloves looked very wood-nimph like. It felt something more out of 'Mid-summare night's dream' than a rock concert.

"It looks like you tapped sticks to your hands that you found in a forest," Sweetie Bell said with a laugh.

"Whatever," Beats snorted.

Then, it was serious time.

"Ok now," Gilda said, bringing her voice to a low and serious tone, stressing how hard she was trying to get them focused into becoming one band right at that moment. "We've played a lot of shows and played infront of a strange variety of groups before, but nothing like this. These guys may appear to be pamp and proper but Sweetie Bell, you know as well as I that even Rarity can bust a move to our music once in a while."

Sweetie Bell laughed at that comment.

"So let's make these buckers do the same," Gilda shouted. "Let's get them rilled up. Let's make them forget who they are and rest only on primal instincts. Let's turn these buckers into bucking animals. You ready?"

"YEAH!" the band shouted back.

"BEAT'S GLOVES SUCK ON THREE," Gilda proclaimed. The band laughed for a bit, and then they got back into the zone once more.

"ONE-TWO-THREE,"

"BEAT'S GLOVES SUCK!"

* * *

As Apple Bloom, Scootaloo, and Diamond Tiara finally got into their place on the ground floor, the lights began to dim. The crowd reacted in one of the strangest ways ever. In a normal rock concert, the audience would be going wild. They would be yelling, screaming, shouted in approval at the arrival of their favorite band. This was not the case with the Canterlot crowd. They responded in silence. It was out of respect, like an audience does in a movie theater, but it still came off as extremely awkward.

However, as the curtains pulled themselves apart, all of that strangeness melted away with Sweetie Bell's opening riff. To the rest of the audience, they were completely blown away by the type of music they were being presented with. It was a strange and foreign to their ears. To Apple Bloom, Scootaloo, and Daimond Tiara, they all recognized it as the intro for their new classic "Sleep Now in the Fire."

The spotlight shone on Sweetie Bell, who wore her traditional hat and stood on two legs. It was what separated her and Thunder from most musical equines, the fact that they were bipedal when performing. She had this great smile on her face. She enjoyed the very job that she did. She looked around the entire circumference of the stage and the crowd that stared back at her, smiling so wildly and happily. She continued with her riff, her iconic riff, and then two more spotlights beamed themselves on, and revealed both Thunder and Beats providing backing rhythm. Beats played his drums like he was going to kill them, like the drums said some degrading things about his mother. Thunder played the bass so smoothly that he should've been dressed in a tux, all swagged out. After 4 measures of this great build-up, the moment finally arrived. For the previous moments leading up to it, Gilda had been standing in the center of the stage, in the darkness. She had closed her eyes and shaken all of her limbs loose. She was getting into her natural zone. She was bouncing a bit, and when it came time for it, she released everything, all of her energy, into one long courageous yell.

"YEAH!" she screamed as powerfully as she could.

And then the song officially started. The bass and guitar played the same exact riff together in synch. The drummer played a great rock beat with dotted eighth notes on the snare drum and just eight notes on the bass, creating a hip-hop vibe but with such furiosity and power that it could've been mistaken for a thrash metal song. The entire band was jumping to the sound, even Sweetie Bell, while not even missing a beat of her chords. Gilda was the craziest; bringing her hind legs all the way up to her chest as she jumped about the stage. She could've easily been a pro athlete with a vertical jump such as that.

Now normally, the crowds at their shows at this moment would be jumping along with them. Sadly, this wasn't the case. And if caused them all to fear that they weren't welcomed there. But suddenly, the mood of the crowd gradually changed around verse 1, when a lone soul in the crowd jumped for a bit; just for a bit, and caused the audience to wonder what would happen if they did the same.

The pony, was Diamond Tiara.

And it first, it totally baffled the crowd for quite some time. In fact, even Apple Bloom and Scootaloo, who otherwise would've been the first to start the chaotic fun, were perplexed and baffled by Diamond Tiara's sudden burst of eagerness. When she stopped she looked at Apple Bloom and Scootaloo, and instead of stopping awkwardly and embarrassingly hiding her face, she smiled greatly, and cocked her head, as if to say 'join me.'

Apple Bloom smiled wickedly, and after a few more seconds, both of them proceeded to jump.

Eventually this lead to Scootaloo joining the fun. Eventually, this lead to the people behind them to move as well. Eventually, all of that culminated into one big mosh pit which lasted the rest of the night, and the only time it stopped, was during each of Sweetie Bell's solos. The Solo for "Sleep Now in the fire," came right as soon as everyone started to finally jump. Suddenly, when it was her time, everyone exited the riff except for her. She continued playing the riff for 4 more measures, before Gilda came in with another shriek to transcend into the solo. The solo was one of a kind. Sweetie would pluck a harmonic note, and flip the treble and rhythm switch back and forth, just like she would do with her solo on "Bulls on Parade," but instead, the amp would be shrieking really loud and she would use the whammy bar to lowered the note and change it. It was truly bizarre, and it was epic. The crowd was now frantic, and when she finished her solo, she realized that nothing could come this close to her happiness

"SLEEP NOW IN THE FIRE!" Gilda sang as she jumped. "SLEEP NOW IN THE FIRE!" the band was in synch and playing as one being for the end of their song. "SLEEP NOW IN THE FIRE!" there was only one more measure left. "SLEEP NOW IN THE FIRE!"

And in an explosion that could've rocked the foundations of the entire pony universe, the song ended.

The crowd screamed.

* * *

When Apple Bloom, Scootaloo, and Diamond Tiara arrived back stage, the reaction Sweetie Bell gave was very casual and predictable. She greeted her friends with smiles and hugs; happy to see them after so many months apart (the touring could be brutal to the Cutie Mark Crusaders), and then she eyed the newest entity in the room. When Tiara introduced herself, Sweetie's jaw hung slack. She was flabbergasted, in fact, she was literally speechless.

It took some time, but eventually, they both started a conversation. It started off as simple. 'how've you been?' 'fine, thank you.' 'the show was really awesome tonight.' 'really, aw thanks.' And then, somehow, the topic of their conversation got brought around to crazy things they seen at live shows; and that was when instantly, Diamond Tiara and Sweetie Bell became best friends.

"You saw SlipFoal in concert?" Sweetie asked amazed.

"Yes," Tiara replied with a smile.

"SlipFOAL!" Sweetie Bell still couldn't believe it.

"The one and only," Diamond Tiara replied. "It was such a crazy show, so many people got injured."

The Crusaders, along with RAGE were now sitting at a table, sharing a bottle of AppleJack Daniels passing it to and fro. They had been laughing, cohering, and carrying on about life in general happily. Translation; the typical backstage pass talk. It continued on as such, as Sweetie Bell talked about some of the injuries she and her band mates endured during live shows, when the manager came to ask he could talk to the band. As Gilda, Thunder, and Beats got up, Sweetie asked if she could stay behind for a bit.

"Sure," Gilda stated. "just don't wait to long. I have a feeling that our manager may have something important to tell us."

And with that, she left.

There was a small silence that filled the room. Everyone looked at eachother, unsure of what to say to break the silence. It wasn't awkward, and it wasn't tense, it was just…..silent. Then, finally, Sweetie Bell spoke.

"You do realize," she said in a monotone voice filled with nostalgia and self-reflection. "that ten years ago, we were blank. ….Ten years ago, we had no clue where we were going. We had nothing. We were wander's of a wasteland looking for some food….shelter…..just something to call our own. We were looking for destiny…and we have it now."

"Boy, we sure did some stupid stuff to get it," Scootaloo chuckled. They all giggled at this comment.

"…but now that we have them…we still experience lost," Sweetie Bell stated. They all looked down with this comment. She was right. "We thought everything would be better once we got them, and it is, but we still feel. We still fail….we're still crusading for something better."

"Was it worth it?" Diamond Tiara asked curiously.

After another moment of silence, Apple Bloom raised her glass in the air.

"On the count of three," Apple Bloom said. "We will clink our glasses together and shout BUCK YES! You with me?"

They all nod their heads and raised their glasses.

"ONE-TWO-THREE,"

"BUCK YES!"

**Thank you for the love. Thank you for the toleration. Thank you for the support. Thank you for the comments. Comments more and pass around this story amongst friends. I will soon watch all of ya in the future but my Java script sucks right now. But in the mean time, I hope I keep in contact with you all so I can alert you when my next story comes out. Until then, I just want to say thank you, and that this, is officially….**

_**THE END!**_


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